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Discussion Will Tears of the Kingdom make Breath of the Wild unnecessary ?

Will Tears of the Kingdom make Breath of the Wild unnecessary ?


  • Total voters
    189

TheSpearGuy

transcended to the gods
In 2037, when we get nostalgic for the Switch and we want to play a Zelda game, BotW will sit right next to TotK, wouldn´t we just choose TotK because it has BotW entire map AND more features ?
 
We don't know enough yet to say for sure, but I'm 99% confident in voting no.
 
In 2037, when we get nostalgic for the Switch and we want to play a Zelda game, BotW will sit right next to TotK, wouldn´t we just choose TotK because it has BotW entire map AND more features ?
I don’t think we know for sure that this is the case. It‘s probably BASED on the same map, but it’s probably different and not just added to.

That said, I think it’d depend on what you’re going to it for. If you going for story, first of all: bummer. But also: what little story there IS in BOTW won’t be in TOTK in any capacity.

If you’re simply going for gameplay reasons I feel you’d be hard-pressed to find a reason to go to BOTW over TOTK.
 
I'm almost sure that BotW will remain the best game to return to just to vibe
 
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Here's a theory: the map in Tears of the Kingdom will be significantly transformed from Breath of the Wild, being populated with more diverse enemies, dungeons, and towns. Breath of the Wild was mostly empty, Tears of the Kingdom will be more developed.

If this is the case, the empty "wild" atmosphere will remain unique and appeals to many.
 
Here's a theory: the map in Tears of the Kingdom will be significantly transformed from Breath of the Wild, being populated with more diverse enemies, dungeons, and towns. Breath of the Wild was mostly empty, Tears of the Kingdom will be more developed.

If this is the case, the empty "wild" atmosphere will remain unique and appeals to many.
This is genuinely what I've assumed since the beginning
 
I don't think so as i'm expecting TotK to be different enough to BotW after that long time.
 
Yakuza 6 having more stuff in Kamurocho than Yakuza 1 doesn't make 1 obsolete.
 
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I agree with the sentiment in the OP that because TotK is the same engine with more features like skydiving, I might be more tempted to return to it over BotW just to mess around with more things to do.

But that's a different question from if ToTK makes BotW 'unnecessary'. Nah.

BotW has its own thing about Link returning to a ruined world and using ancient advanced relics to rediscover his history and have a rematch with the force that killed his friends and put him to sleep. TotK has a different setup that follows this story. Ideally these games would play off of each other.
 
Quite the opposite, it will make it more necessary by virtue of BotW providing important context for whatever happens in TotK
 
Tears of the Kingdom?

Ah, you mean Breath of the Wild International Zodiac Job System!

I am not worried
 
Did Link Between Worlds make Link to the Past unnecessary, just because it’s based on the same map? No.
Not sure if I'll make this comparison since the maps is way way way smaller in those games and ALTTP and ALBW came decades apart and play and look different.

Of course we don't know much about the new Zelda so we cant tell if the same is gonna apply
 
Based on the entire series so far, it feels like making prior entries obsolete is specifically NOT something the Zelda team shoots for.

They all have unique vibes and mechanics that make the games more than “the last one but better”

There will be plenty of iterative improvements in TOTK over BOTW. But there will also be lots of bold decisions to make the game stand out from its predecessor, and some may not prefer them
 
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If you’re simply going for gameplay reasons I feel you’d be hard-pressed to find a reason to go to BOTW over TOTOTK.

That's a lot of assumptions being made that TOTK will carry over everything from BOTW with extra stuff on the side rather than building a different gameplay loop. Chances are, BOTW will still feel unique to play in terms of mechanics, structure, pacing and flow.

However, I have said that there's a number of people poised to turn on BOTW for quite some time.
 
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My feeling says yes, if the sequel is nothing but added substance over BotW's world, then what is left to come back to in BotW save for a few smaller things like the story and the koroks? I'd walk through it for nostalgia sake but right now the way the game is looking to become Tears of the Wild seems to become BotW Jumbo to me.
 
I can’t follow the other posters enthusiasm here that both games will and must remain equally interesting. When you revisit the same world again but you had 5 more years to add stuff, refine things etc., I do understand this thought, just based on the fact that it’s a new take on this existing world.

Depending on the changes that are made, some people will prefer it over BOTW and some won’t. If the sky areas and the new mechanics add even more depth to the world, I can see me returning to TOTK but not to BOTW. „Unnecessary“ sounds a bit harsh though. I loved BOTW, but I do think I‘ll like this game even more and then it doesn’t really make sense for me to return to BOTW.
 
Yep, once ToTK comes out BotW is going into the dumpster alongside Zelda, AoL, LTTP, LA, OoT, MM, OoA/S, WW, 4S, 4SA, MC, TP, Crossbow Training, PH, ST, SS, ALBW, and Tri Heroes. Once a new Zelda comes out there is no reason EVER to play an old Zelda game

/s
 
Not even Galaxy 2 made its predecessor seem unnecessary.

At the end of the day Tears of the Kingdom will go for a different gameplay experience.
 
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Sequels rarely make the originals unnecessary. If anything they usually do the opposite.
 
Even ALBW, perhaps the one Zelda game that is both a sequel and remarkably similar to a previous work without being an actual remake, is still unique enough that both games are not only valid, but offer something "unique" unto themselves.

I'm not worried at all.
 
TotK isn’t even out yet haha.

But uhh I’m gonna go with “no.” Feel like they’re doing some things different enough.
 
Did Link Between Worlds make Link to the Past unnecessary, just because it’s based on the same map? No.
ALTTP made ALBW unnecessary on release. Besides the merge mechanic and the one different dungeon theme it’s basically the same game but worse and with a worse progression. It’s basically the fast food of Zelda games and should barely count as a mainline entry, the only worse games imo are the DS ones and even then at least those had a better creative process

We just don’t know enough about TOTK yet. It could make sense as a sequel, it could complete BOTW. That being said BOTW is very much one and done for me, the good parts are too few and far in between so I wouldn’t want to ever replay it. Once the magic runs out it wouldn’t be the same on a replay. If TOTK has real dungeons and a more consistent structure it might overshadow it but then again I’m pretty sick of BOTW’s map at this point so it would take a lot of differences for it to stand out. Maybe it could be a better game overall but lack the surprising moments in BOTW such as encountering your first Guardian, figuring out how to go to Kakariko, stumbling upon the ice dragon, the desert being by far the best part of the game. I dunno
 
One of the best things about the Zelda series is that no game renders the others irrelevant because they all try to do their own thing.

Nintendo tends to make their sequels different enough so that older games are still worth playing.

It's funny to see people say these things when people still see the Wii/DS era of Zelda as "formulaic" just because they used the "two act structure" and "the same settings".

Even outside of Zelda, there's things like the Super Mario 3D duology being seen as too derivative of New Super Mario Bros.
 
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I really doubt it. Nintendo tends to change up the series entry to entry. I don't expect TotK to just be BotW but better and with more stuff, even if that will be a decent chunk of it. Plenty will be changed or made different and I can see people preferring how BotW did things or maybe playing one or the other because of how they're structured and approached

ALTTP made ALBW unnecessary on release. Besides the merge mechanic and the one different dungeon theme it’s basically the same game but worse and with a worse progression. It’s basically the fast food of Zelda games and should barely count as a mainline entry, the only worse games imo are the DS ones and even then at least those had a better creative process
Nah, I found ALBW a much more fun game than ALTTP. It controls much more smoothly and nicely, I find it more visually appealing, and I liked the freedom to explore however I wanted early on as soon as I bought all of the items. Among the few Zelda games I replayed immediately just because it was so much fun and the pacing was so nice. Of course, I didn't grow up with ALTTP so that probably didn't help
 
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This reads like "Will Majora's Mask make Ocarina of Time unnecessary"

Come on OP, No zelda-game has been a 2.0-version of the previous iteration and there is no indication Tears will be of Breath.
 
ALTTP made ALBW unnecessary on release. Besides the merge mechanic and the one different dungeon theme it’s basically the same game but worse and with a worse progression. It’s basically the fast food of Zelda games and should barely count as a mainline entry, the only worse games imo are the DS ones and even then at least those had a better creative process

We just don’t know enough about TOTK yet. It could make sense as a sequel, it could complete BOTW. That being said BOTW is very much one and done for me, the good parts are too few and far in between so I wouldn’t want to ever replay it. Once the magic runs out it wouldn’t be the same on a replay. If TOTK has real dungeons and a more consistent structure it might overshadow it but then again I’m pretty sick of BOTW’s map at this point so it would take a lot of differences for it to stand out. Maybe it could be a better game overall but lack the surprising moments in BOTW such as encountering your first Guardian, figuring out how to go to Kakariko, stumbling upon the ice dragon, the desert being by far the best part of the game. I dunno
A Link between Worlds was a blast to play through. I love ALttP but ALbW played wonderfully with players expectations.

The wall merging is a really genius way to make you think about other rooms and dungeon layers. You certainly had those moments too in ALttP but really only in the later dungeons.

While some folks criticize the game for its limited item usage because of the rental system I appreciated how the dungeons themselves utilized the items to the fullest.

The game is honestly only behind ALttP to me when it comes to 2D Zelda.

The rental system is also a great risk/reward system. Feels good to conquer the world early in your playthrough.
 
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It really does depend on how much of BotWs hyrule is reused without change.

Like if the only new stuff is underground and in the sky, but above underground is the same as BotW, then it's a maybe.
 
Zelda team loves to make each of their game stand out. I know there is game changing elements that are not being shown rn that will turn the formula of Botw upside down. If you expect ToTK to be Botw with islands and some new mechanics, you will be disappointed. There will most likely be major differences in tones and gameplay.
 
Here's a theory: the map in Tears of the Kingdom will be significantly transformed from Breath of the Wild, being populated with more diverse enemies, dungeons, and towns. Breath of the Wild was mostly empty, Tears of the Kingdom will be more developed.

If this is the case, the empty "wild" atmosphere will remain unique and appeals to many.
I can see this BOTW world is empty but it kind of feels purposeful at least
 
What? No. How? Why? I’m so confused.

Did Pokémon Gold/Silver make Red/Blue irrelevant? Did A Link Between Worlds make A Link to the Past irrelevant? Did Zelda II make Zelda 1 irrelevant?

Will GOW Ragnarok make GOW2018 irrelevant?
 
I think it will.
I feel you will be able to compare it like LoZ and LttP.

TotK will have a different atmosphere, a different vibe.
How much, dont know. Will the gameplay change enough to feel kompletly different? i dont think so.
Stuff like The islands always being up there and the Castle Flying will give the game a different vibe at least.

Im shure TotK will be prefered, because it will probably be the more refined Game.
But i also think, if some want the more chill lost relaxed vibe of BotW it will be there for them.

Just from an urgency point of view:
Link had lost his memories, you wake up 100 years after, with no knowledge. The first hours are you just chilling and exploring.
And even after that...hes there for 100 years, why stress now.

Here? You have full knowledge of the world, whats happening, zelda just fell into the ground, ganondorf JUST woke up.
The castle, that was probably retaken by the people of hyrule is in the sky, maybe still with part of the people.
Tha game will feel more urgent in its narative.
 
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No, it will likely be the perfect companion piece to BotW.

We’re probably going to be slowly transforming Hyrule as we play, anyway. God, I’m excited for this game.
 
If it address a lot of problems I have with the first game and having the exact same map with additions I believe it can. Though I already don't see myself having urge to play the original again like I have with other 3d Zelda.

But it's highly unlikely for other people to feel the same.
 
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This thread did make me think about the ways these games will likely differ between each other more. The safest assumptions is most, if not all of the shrines and divine beasts (as dungeons) are likely gone/replaced between games which is a truly significant amount of content.

Someone must have done a deep dive analysis by now telling us how much of the overworld looks different or not. I’m expecting that to be mostly the same which is where I think OP is coming from, but who knows. There could be new threats making traversal more perilous and stuff like Link’s new airship thing is going to fundamentally change how we approach the game.

Feels so good to have a release date for this game. We are so close!
 
No, but most of the comparisons in this topic are pretty non-analogous I feel like, given that these are non-story driven open world games. The most similar thing I can think of is like....maybe Oblivion vs. Skyrim.
 
I just can’t wrap my head around this thinking. We’re talking about creative works of art, not disposable consumables. Breath of the Wild is a very specific work of art with carefully considered design and curated systems and mechanics designed to deliver a very specific and exact vision by the creator. That its mechanics or structure may be subsumed by a follow up game that proceeds to build on them to deliver something else won’t make it suddenly outdated or obsolete, even if many (or even most) prefer what the follow up has to provide. That just means that those people prefer the vision for what the follow up is providing more, but it doesn’t make the vision and experience of the original any less valid.

This is a creative work with a very specific experience it’s going for. Whatever TOTK turns out to be, we already know it’s going for something very different. It doesn’t just “replace” BOTW, honestly I find the very notion ridiculous.
 


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